Wilhelmsen Ships Service (WSS) is launching a pilot program to study the use of unmanned aircraft systems for delivering supplies to ocean vessels.

The US Air Force Research Lab (AFRL) is developing a tube-launched unmanned aircraft system (UAS) that can be deployed from an AC-130 gunship, or similar aircraft, and provide video that will rival that provided by its own sensors.

Spain-based start-up DRONE HOPPER has designed a heavy-duty firefighting drone that the company says offers “safety, flexibility and efficiency over traditional fire suppression technology.”

AeroVironment, Inc. has officially unveiled the new Snipe Nano Quad, a miniature (“Class 0”) and field-rugged unmanned aircraft system designed to support close-range intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance missions.  The first U.S. government customer delivery of 20 Snipe systems took place in April.

NASA has awarded Black Swift Technologies, a specialized engineering firm, a contract to develop and deliver a purpose-built scientific platform to explore volcanoes in order to improve air traffic management systems and the accuracy of ashfall measurements.

HAZON Solutions, a provider of drone inspection services, has announced the launch of the HAZON Drone Management System (HAZON DMS). HAZON DMS is a secure, web-based management tool providing every drone operator, whether a hobbyist with a single drone or a large corporation with hundreds of drones, a way to safely and efficiently track and manage their drone fleet, pilots and workflow.

Last week, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and its partners are conducting detection research on unmanned aircraft (UAS) – popularly called drones – at Dallas/Fort Worth International (DFW) Airport.The DFW evaluation is the latest in a series of detection system evaluations that began in February 2016. Previous evaluations took place at Atlantic City International Airport; John F. Kennedy International Airport; Eglin Air Force Base; Helsinki, Finland Airport; and Denver International Airport.

Nearly mirroring its approach to examine the art of the possible for a Future Vertical Lift aircraft, the U.S. Army plans to conduct a science and technology-level demonstration of a next-generation tactical unmanned aircraft system that would replace the Shadow and the Gray Eagle.

Bat-detecting drones could help us find out what the animals get up to when flying.  Ultrasonic detectors on drones in the air and on the water are listening in on bat calls, in the hope of discovering more about the mammals’ lives beyond the reach of ground-based monitoring devices.